Mindanao Advice

Mentality is Destiny is the first article on this website. I have asked my husband to write it and include the best general advice he can think of, drawing on his long life as a sailor, actor, film director, film producer, and author. The result thrilled me; it’s so crystal-clear and simple. It touched something deep within me, and I will try to follow his advice the best way I can.

Here it is:

Living in the Philippines has taught me to appreciate how a strong belief in God can create small local miracles, and I admire the many everyday heroes who struggle to help their families and never give up.

Faith can move mountains and create nations. Without a strong faith, the Jewish people would not have survived 1,900 years in exile and would not have attempted to build a new state surrounded by mighty enemies. (Check updated note below)

But faith has a gruesome face when fanatics perform it.  We are often reminded of that through war reports from the Middle East. When you kill in the name of God, you are as far away from him as possible, and this leads to a very interesting question: Since faith in God can create complete opposite action, is the faith in Him most likely based on a need for a God, and tailored to fit the believer’s purpose?

The Christians believe that creation is a result of will, and the atheists claim that it’s a result of chance.  But does it matter if there is a God or not?  Our responsibilities as humans will remain the same, regardless, and the meaning of life will always be to care for it in the best possible way.

Everybody knows that kindness and mercy have beneficial effects on human relations.  It’s a cosmic truth that’s developed in all religions – the foundation of a just society – and needs to be applied more if we want a better world.  But why is this so difficult to achieve?

It probably has to do with our egoistic mentality and the difficulties of changing that. But our mindset becomes our destiny. Therefore, we must take action, and we must begin with ourselves (as many wise people around the world have done for decades). But the process is difficult and slow.

One thing all of us should focus more on is the concept of kindness and mercy. Jesus practiced wisdom that radically gave us insights on how to live together in peace, and before him, Buddha did a similar thing. Rightly understood, the Quran is full of insights into human behavior, just like the Bible. However, both holy books are often misused to establish hierarchies that claim to hold the truth and wield power. We must learn to see through this. We must learn to handle the locusts of temptations and the false prophets that permeate all societies. And rid ourselves of hypocrisy.

This is not easy, though.  Hatred disguised as love is perhaps the most destructive force of all. It misses the target of mercy completely and is a denial of the principles of life. When lies masquerade as truth, all civilizations will ultimately end in injustice and terror.

However, by revealing our comforting lies, taking steps to practice more kindness and mercy, and electing incorruptible leaders with good social profiles to represent us, we will have a greater chance of creating a better world and living a more meaningful life here and now.

Note: This article was written in 2014, at a time when there was still hope that Israel and Palestine could find a solution to their tragically long-standing conflict. The growing intransigence on both sides now clearly illustrates what may happen to the rest of the world if revenge and unforgiveness are allowed to prevail.

You may also want to read my series of articles on what the world now needs to move in a more constructive direction. The first current article, “Path to Peace: A Drawing for Our Time,” is inspired by one of my father, Odd Einarson’s, old drawings.